Chiefs OL and OTs: It’s Viable Choices or Nonsense

David Bell

As I begin to type this article for ArrowheadOne, today is May 6th, and the 3 Days of the Chiefs Rookie Mini-Camp started to earlier today. I am interested to see this unfold and who moves on to Training Camp. Fun stuff! I’ve been following comments by fans, analysts, and pundits who are appraising the new Chiefs OL. While some of the observations are entirely valid including some critiques, I think the negativity is completely off-base. On Saturday, Laddie Morse had an article that evaluated the Chief’s position groups and rated them as improved, similar or worse. There were none in the latter category. Read that article here:

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My focus for this article today, is essentially the Chiefs OT position group, but first, I wish to address the Interior OL.

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The Chiefs Interior Offensive Line

KC has one of the best IOLs, if not THE best in the NFL. The IOL has a depth that puts in an improved status due to moving people to the group for depth, such as Darian Kinnard or Mike Caliendo.

At the Center of things, the Chiefs can boast the best OC in the NFL: Creed Humphrey. I will again admit he was not my choice for the Chiefs since he was left-handed. Boy! was I wrong on that take. Before Brett Veach went to get LOG Joe Thuney, in communicating with Laddie, I observed what a great thing it would be if, somehow, Veach could bring Thuney aboard. Thuney embodies a Technical Pro, one of the best OGs I can recall in recent memory. Thuney is a technician personified. Harken and Lo’, Veach then actually signed Joe Thuney. This was one of the most adept moves in Brett Veach’s tenure as the Chiefs GM. As of 2023, Thuney has three years remaining on his contract. Signing Thuney in 2020 was a Veach Ace of Hearts!

In 2021, Veach also drafted OG Trey Smith, UTenn. I saluted that draft pick at the time, and rightly so. Smith immediately won the starting role for the ROG Position. He fits the Chief’s persona, communicates well, and is a definite asset as a “mauler” on the OL. I look to Smith to show significant gains in performance in 2023.

These three players are the starting IOL which also boasts a versatile Depth player: Nick Allegretti. Nick backs up all three interior positions. What is more, Allegretti can take on starts to replace an injured player. That’s likely best for the short term, but if Heck had to sub him in the long term, I would not be frightened, should one of the starters have a longer-term injury, because I believe Allegretti can handle to task.

The Chiefs have two more players penciled in for OG roles: Darian Kinnard and Mike Caliendo though I can see either player as an OT as well. My point is that with the addition of two Free Agents: Donovan Smith and Jawaan Taylor. Plus, having Wanya Morris as a draft pick, and flexibility to support, the IOL is in great shape. It is an improved position grouping for that reason. 2023 is year two for both Kinnard and Caliendo, each man listed on the roster as OL. That implies they both are versatile. They will be well-versed in the OL Playbook, and that experience is hard to beat.

Mike Caliendo was a UDFA out of Western Michigan, and the Chiefs have had a great rapport with that school’s coaching staff: namely Tim Lester. New Head Coach Lance Taylor also appears to have good communication with the Chief’s scouting staff. He had previous experience as a coach for Louisville and Notre Dame, as well as a stint with the Carolina Panthers.

Darian Kinnard was a 2022 draft pick from U of Kentucky. I reviewed the tape on Kinnard and liked what I saw. He was a better candidate than his 5th-round selection but needed work on technique. Some pundits felt that Kinnard, should he develop quickly, could win the ROT role. Others believed he should be moved to the IOL. As of now, the Chiefs list him as an OT.

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A Deeper Look at the OT Position Group

The subject has been one of contention with followers of ArrowheadOne and other sites covering the Chiefs. If you follow one of our authors, #1 Chiefs Insider TM, remained skeptical about the status of the OL for about 3 weeks. After the signing of Jawaan Taylor and then after the draft, I am positive he breathed a huge sigh of relief. I believe Laddie has been significantly concerned as well — at least until Veach drafted Wanya Morris, a draft pick I also believe will figure into the future for Andy Heck’s unit. In the recent draft, I gave both FAU and Rice “A” Grades and Morris, a “B”. For me, a B grade is e,xcellent indicating a player that could earn a starting role in year one.

How do I see things? Laddie and I had a discussion about the starting roles at OT for 2023. He observed that Smith was a LOT starter in the NFL and that Taylor was a starter at ROT. I quoted Seth Keysor’s view of the pair, and he indicated that he believed the Chiefs were working to become more athletic at LOT. That description did not apply to Orlando Brown. There is a review of the OTs by Ryan Tracy and Daniel Harms of RGR Football on Youtube. You should watch or listen in, here:

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Job #One

Laddie, myself, and David Ferguson all believe that “Job #One” of the OL is –> to protect Patrick Mahomes. The problem with the OL in 2022 was part of the overview that we should all have this take about: “Orlando Brown” is not a tier one OT, and Andrew Wylie is a depth player, but not a starter level player. As for myself? I would have preferred that Brown move on (which he has–to the Bengals), and I would liked to have retained Wylie as a ROT Depth player. Wylie was rewarded for his 2022 work, especially what he accomplished in post-season play. That raised Wylie’s stock beyond what the Chiefs wanted to afford. Wylie moved to greener pastures with the Washington Commanders and was rewarded with a hefty signing contract. More power to him.

My view of Brown was he is a Prima Donna and did not fit the KC Team persona. Brown may have earned a Pro Bowl bid for 2 years in a row but for me, that nomination educates me that the value of gaining a Pro Bowl nod is tarnished. Brown did not deserve it. Both OTs whiffed on blocks so often that I became frustrated watching the games. PMII was sacked 26 times in 2022. That is unacceptable. I saw no reason to prevent Wylie from departing by offering a big contract. I found no redemption in the idea of keeping Orlando Brown though I though Veach would tag him for 2023. This brings me to my second viewpoint.

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Without Wylie, is the ROT Position Improved?

It was my view that Andrew Wylie was an average or below average starter at the ROT position. In 2020, he couldn’t win a starting role as an OG. In 2021, Lucas Niang won the starting ROT role. When Niang was knocked out for the season, Wylie moved up to take over. We fans suffered through a few games with Wylie at ROT in the close of the 2021 season and in the first half of 2022. He had numerous whiffs and cost pressures, hits and sacks by missing key blocks. I noted that he improved his play and deserves a ton of credit for the 2022 post season, the end result of which was to see him move on in Free Agency.

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Without OBJr., is the LOT Position Improved?

To come up with an answer to this single question, I had to compartmentalize my thinking. My evaluation of Brown has been that he is a good LOT — not great, not top 10, and not a Pro Bowl Level. Still, I thought he would get a 2nd season on the tag. Poof… he is gone which means that my underlying evaluation was correct — he was not a good addition for the Chiefs OL in the first place. He was good enough to tag at #16M in 2021 and I thought he would be good enough to tag in 2023 at $20M — Inflation has sent the cost of getting Good OTs in the NFL skyward. Brett Veach made a decision along with Andy Reid to cut bait which is why the signing of Jawaan Taylor occurred on the 2nd day of Free Agency.

Jawaan Taylor – if you take a peek at his first season’s cap hit, it is clearly extremely reasonable. If you look at the 4-year contract, the cost will average $20M per season. Jawaan Taylor is a solid OT. The Chief’s Scouts and coaching staff believed in him enough to give a positive view of Taylor’s athleticism and quick feet for Brett Veach to bring Taylor aboard. I went to see what I could on film for Taylor, and he looked good. I then found a short video of him working out on the left side, buttressing the KC-stated position of moving Taylor to the left side. I still believe that could happen but will depend on Donovan Smith and whether he can resume play at his 2021 level and before. Smith has never gotten a Pro Bowl nod but he is a solid LOT.

Taylor’s credentials begin with pass protection where he boasted the 3rd lowest pressure/hit/sack rate among all OTs. His opening presser with the Chiefs demonstrated his confidence when he remarked:

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“I feel like I can go out and make the switch pretty seamless(ly)… but, you know, at the end of the day, if they need me to switch over and play other positions, I’m open to doing it. I’m just here to try to help this team win championships.”

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The view of Taylor can be summarized by Andy Reid best:

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“If we had another left tackle… (Taylor) can play (the) right side, so he gives you flexibility… He’s smart. He can probably play center if we had to. He’s a pretty talented kid.”

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At the time of the signing, the view of Taylor was highly positive.

Here is a review of the Taylor addition. the following review addresses the positives and negatives of Taylor’s play. He is a significantly better pass-blocker than a blocker in the run game which the included video demonstrates.

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You can decide for yourself. I am satisfied that Job #One will be handled well and I believe that Andy Heck will be of great benefit for Jawaan Taylor.

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n my opinion, if Jawaan can make that transition, he gives KC a quicker LOT than Brown and certainly Eric Fisher too.

As far as I am concerned, Taylor would be an upgrade over Brown in all aspects, save for run blocking, at which Brown excelled.

Deeper Still – the Chiefs drafted OT Wanya Morris and Morris initially received an “A” Grade from me as I informed Laddie. I then backed off to a “B” type grade. The reason for that was due to his draft rating. Morris was a great draft pick with added benefits. Morris was a UTenn Starter at LOT and when he then transferred to OT University(Oklahoma), he played ROT opposite LOT Anton Harrison who went #27 to the Jags. If you recall, I was big on Harrison as the target in the draft for the Chiefs at pick #31, mentioning that Veach might need to trade up to be able to select him, which turned out to be the case.

Of course, I would have liked to have had the opportunity to trade up and select Broderick Jones (who went #14 to the Steelers), but that was not really viable at all. Harrison slipped by and the Chiefs went a different direction and drafted FAU. In the 2nd round, Veach drafted WR Rashee Rice. That probably makes the 3rd round pick of Wanya Morris a superb choice. His versatility for the left or right will be of immediate value to HC Andy Reid and OL Coach Andy Heck. For that matter, Morris could win the ROT outright or even the left. He is a good player that fits, and his versatility is something the Chiefs take into account when considering bringing a player to the Kingdom.

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The Cost of Doing OT Business

I think it’s safe to say that the basic cost of an experienced, starting OT ranges from $15M-$20M or even more. The contract for Donovan Smith is still in the “up-to” stage at the max, $9M. Smith’s 2022 saw him suffer multiple injuries, and he played through them. Smith has started 124 NFL games and has not missed a start, so it may be that it is a bit of a gamble to think Smith will be a starter in 2023. On the other hand, his history says he will be a durable, dependable starter. From all I have read, he is fully recovered and should return to his old self in his 9th NFL season. That is a cheap cost for such an OT.

Combine that with the year-one cost of having signed Jawaan Taylor. It appears to me the cap hit for both players will be about $10M because the Chiefs have only $3.726M. An existing player will need to get an extension for reduced 2023 cap monies even still. Veach will need cap space for in-camp and season operating necessities. The initial effect though remains with the top 51 players.

Other needs will be taken care of down the road. The Chiefs have yet to sign all the Rookies. Only Rice, Connor, and Morris have signed their Rookie Contracts. Four more to go before that is complete. Hence my observation about Smith’s deal… it has to be small enough to fit and still sign 4 more rookies at $750k each ($3M total). Again, no player contract has been revised at this time to make room for Smith’s deal. OTC shows him signed, but no values are reported for the contract.

More to the point is the fact that the OT salary ranges from $25M+ down to $14M+ for the top 22 OTs. Brown ranks #17 at @$16M. Smith ranks #31 at $9M and I don’t think that number is guaranteed base — I think it is a base plus incentive but we don’t know for sure yet.

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Taylor, at $20M, ranks #5. His 2023 Cap hit is only about $5M. Jawaan Taylor is a superior player and belongs close to the top of the rankings. As a LOT we must wait to see how he does but keep in mind how I posit the starters later in this post.

I am not going to quake if Smith starts out on the left – nor Taylor. What I see is a good competition that will boost the ability of the OL to protect PMII and either should be good with run blocking, I think Taylor is superior in that regard due to his footwork and quickness. Taylor, at $20M per year has all the reason to put out all effort and then some to earn that compensation. Smith can play ROT, or as noted, he could end up the #2 LOT. We’ll see how it unfolds early in camp.

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Evaluating the Players in Play

Different Ways it Likely Will Work!

I suppose I am going to poke fun at the naysayers posting on Twitter. The negativity I see is unwarranted, if not silly. In a conversation with Laddie on Friday, he made two key points: 1) Taylor was a starter at ROT, and 2) Smith was a starter at LOT. It made sense to pencil in both as starters at their previous positions.

My take is a bit different. I truly like the more athletic Taylor as the starting LOT. He is signed for 4-years, while Smith is on a “prove it” one-year deal. It might well be that Smith begins 2023 as the LOT and Taylor on the right. and if Smith earns a second contract, all is good. That would be the peaches in the homemade ice cream. It might be that Smith becomes the #2 LOT but starts on the Right or he could be LOT #2 if the need arose. Hard to figure out so early, but the odds are Brett Veach has assembled the right cast for the job. As an unidentified NFL Exec recently put it when discussing the Chief’s off-season moves with The Athletic staff: “It seems like they figured out as long as you protect Mahomes, nothing else matters…It is probably true.” (Nate Taylor quoted this again in his article on Saturday).

My point in discussing this is that Brett Veach stated after Jawaan Taylor was signed and that he would be the starter. he was designated for the LOT Role.

Already in-house OT, Prince Tega-Wanogho is a very athletic OT with experience as a left OT. I had him penciled in as the backup LOT. At this point, with the existing players on the roster, I follow the above projection of Brett Veach, who said that Lucas Niang was penciled in as the starting ROT. I made a projection that Darian Kinnard would be the backup ROT at that point.

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Round-3 pick Wanya Morris – with the 92nd pick of the round-3 selection, Brett Veach added Wayna Morris to the OT group. I really like This draft pick and probably should have left the ranking as an “A”. Wayna — rhymes with Conye — Morris was the former UTenn LOT and then the ROT for the Sooners. I reviewed articles about the draft and the Twitterstorm about the

purpose of drafting Morris. Once again I felt the negativity to be unwarranted. Adding Morris to the OT group gives the Chiefs a very good OT who is versatile and has played both sides, the LOT and ROT in college. That versatility immediately strengthens the OT group. He is a good enough player to win out as the ROT starter. Who knows? He might even win out on the left, although I doubt this, we haven’t seen him work with the Chiefs OL in camp yet either. Andy Heck’s talent is going to be in extensive use, early in training camp. Let me put it this way: Morris is a great addition to the OT group, no matter what.

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The Chiefs signed LOT Donovan Smith – what appeared to add to the consternation was when the signing of Smith was announced. Another Twitter storm hit the net. For me, this was a no-brainer. Smith has a ton of experience at LOT and was a solid OT for 8 seasons,

save 2022’s down year. It is the type of signing that is in the wheelhouse of Brett Veach. We don’t know the details yet, but we soon will learn what the signing money entails. Smith could shift the OL plans and become the designated starter on the left. Or, Reid, Heck & Co. can stick with the original plan and move Taylor to the left and Smith could start on the right. It’s a one-year contract. it gives the Chiefs great flexibility. Personally, I don’t care who wins the LOT role. Either Taylor or Smith or even Morris. May the best player win that role.

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A Starting OL Projection

I think the offensive line is a very strong group and the OTs are going to sort themselves out in camp which Brett Veach verbalized about in his last presser. I second that view. Daniel Harms in the video which is linked above, patently states in that video that the competition will provide the strongest possible starting line from the internals of camp. I second that view as well. Below I list 10 players. If the team decides to go with 9 players, someone will have a mysterious ankle injury or a hamstring issue.

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I have two players I want to add to the focus: Mike Caliendo OL, and UDFA Jerome Carvin. Carvin is a rookie while the Chiefs brought back Caliendo for a second season. At LOT, Wanogho is another factor. One of the collegiate teammates stated that Wanogho is one of the most athletic OTs he had ever played with/against. That is a great credo, but we need to see game snaps to begin evaluating. We should watch the pre-season games carefully and follow any camp reports that mention their names. Fun Stuff. The Chiefs OL is a gathering storm and the Chiefs fans will benefit, regardless of consternation and confusion. End result? Brett Veach said the competition in camp would determine the OL — especially the OTs — and who fills which role.

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“I think we’ll have good competition between Niang and Wanya,” Veach said Monday… I think (second-year lineman Darian) Kinnard has some flexibility, too. I think Kinnard will go back and forth to tackle and guard. I think Wanya has some tackle-guard flex. I think you’ll see Coach Heck do a great job of mixing and matching. When we get to training camp, we’ll just let the competition speak for itself.”

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I am completely good with that. I am very good with the Chiefs Offensive line cadre overall and I am pleased with the OT group in particular. The starters will get ironed out in training camp and preseason games. By the time those games are played, we will be able to anticipate who the starters will be. I see no reason to be fearful of this group. I believe the end result will be better than Brown and Wylie… with far more depth! I will say this: I trust that GM Brett Veach has done the utmost to ensure Patrick Mahomes will be protected with the best OL that he has provided to OL Coach Andy Heck and Heck is the right man to make it work.

Post me in the comments section about your own thoughts. I will iterate this one more time!

IVWT!

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David Bell — ArrowheadOne

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